New polling of seven electorates belonging to senior Cabinet Ministers, including the Prime Minister, reveals strong opposition to a federal subsidised loan for Adani’s coal project, and support for instituting a moratorium on new coal mines.

The Australia Institute commissioned ReachTEL to conduct surveys of 4,712 Australian residents across the electorates of Wentworth (Turnbull), Cook (Morrison), Curtin (Bishop), Dickson (Dutton), Flinders (Hunt), Kooyong (Frydenberg) and Sturt (Pyne) on the 8th of June 2017.

As Fiji prepares to chair climate talks in late 2017, Pacific leaders are gathering in Suva to consider what policies to push for. One should be a moratorium on new coal mines.

Australian government ministers are actively promoting subsidies to the world’s largest new coal mine, Adani’s Carmichael project. When Pacific leaders have called for a moratorium on new coal, Australian politicians and media have been forced to pay attention. Support for a moratorium has come from leaders such as Fiji’s Prime Minister Bainimarama, former Kirabati President Anote Tong and Marshal Islands President Hilda Heine, and is mentioned in the Suva declaration.

The Hume Coal project should be rejected on economic grounds. It is a relatively small, high-cost, greenfields mine far from major markets. It is unlikely that it can be financially or economically viable as currently proposed. It is already imposing economic costs on the Southern Highlands community. Proceeding with the project, particularly with possible modifications to reduce operating costs, brings the risk of major impacts on groundwater, on which many local industries depend.

This submission should be read in conjunction with other Australia Institute research on coal and the Southern Highlands Economy:

State governments are universally supportive of resource development. They provide considerable financial support to the sector, yet receive relatively little in return. We are unaware of any example of states using the HFE system to argue against resource development.

As the Adani mine proposal becomes a central issue in Australian politics, Prof John Quiggin looks in detail at the economic (non)viability of the mine, which has driven the company’s appeals for subsidies and government support. Prof Quiggin also suggests three reasons the unviable project is still being pursued by its supporters:

**Following the closure of the Climate Institute on 30 June, its significant remaining funds and intellectual property will be transferred to the Australia Institute, to help carry forward the Australia Institute’s climate change-related research and advocacy.**

The Climate Institute has now been conducting its Climate of the Nation attitudinal research for more than a decade. It is the longest continuous survey of community attitudes in the country. And it is our last.

The Australia Institute welcomes the opportunity to make this submission to the Special Review conducted by the Climate Change Authority (CCA) in conjunction with the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC).

The Australia Institute welcomes the opportunity to make a submission to the Finkel Review. With the current state public discussion around energy issues, this review has the potential to steer Australia back towards a policy path that looks after the interests of energy consumers and the environment.

The Climate Institute has selected The Australia Institute to take on remaining funds and intellectual property from the disbanding organisation.

“I am pleased to announce that, following the closure of The Climate Institute on 30 June, its significant remaining funds and intellectual property will be transferred to The Australia Institute, to help carry forward important climate change-related research and advocacy,” Chair of The Climate Institute board, Mark Wootton.

Development of unconventional gas in the NT risks connecting the NT to the chaos in wider Australian gas markets. As the nation becomes a major gas exporter with record production there have been no winners.

The Australia Institute is the country’s most influential progressive think tank. We conduct research on a broad range of economic, social and environmental issues in order to inform public debate and bring greater accountability to the democratic process.